29.4.13

I just wanted to share a quick birthday card I made over the weekend using a chart from a booklet that came with Cross Stitcher magazine last month.

The sweet little cupcake, complete with pastel coloured sprinkles, didn't take long to stitch at all, and I used a basic alphabet chart from the back of the magazine to backstitch the "Happy Birthday!" message.

I'm really pleased with how the cupcake came out, especially once backed onto pink felt. I'll definitely use the chart again for future projects.Have you made any cards lately?

27.4.13

A couple of weekends ago Jonathan and I thought we would treat ourselves to lunch somewhere nearby. He suggested The Garden Room Restaurant which is in Braithwell, Rotherham, as he'd been before many moons ago and recalled that it was nice.

And nice it was! I loved the place from the second I saw the blue painted windows and gates and the adorable car parked outside. It didn't disappoint inside either; shabby chic tables and chairs, floral walls at one end and clever bookshelf wallpaper at the other. Not to mention hat stands and flowers everywhere, and CAKE.

We shared a pot of tea for two which came with extra hot water so we got plenty of cups between us. As a vegetarian I don't often feel spoilt for choice with menus but there was definitely a good handful of options for me to choose from.

Sadly there was nothing vegetarian on the specials board so I went for a sandwich melt from the main menu comprising of portobello mushrooms, mozzarella, pesto and pine nuts (probably one of my favourite groupings of food!) Jonathan went for the deli sandwich from the specials board and we shared a portion of chips. Often one portion to share isn't enough but in this case it was, hurrah!

Given a choice of bread I went for the seeded variety and Jonathan chose ciabatta. My sandwich was very, very good.

We were stuffed at the end of our sandwiches and chips but we were determined to try one of the puddings on offer. There were stands full of goodies along the counter (rocky road, brownies and different kinds of cake) as well as a chiller containing carrot cake, lemon meringue pie, coffee cake, cheesecake and chocolate mousse to name a few. After some lots of deliberating we got a slice of carrot cake and a slice of lemon meringue pie boxed up to take home.

We weren't at home long before those boxes were opened and we consumed our huge pieces of cake. The carrot cake was delicious but I would definitely advise sharing one piece like we did. One thing's for sure, there's no scrimping on portion sizes here! Jonathan said the lemon meringue pie was the best he has ever had and I confirmed, after tucking in to my half of it, that it was indeed superb!

I'm sure it won't be long before we head back here for another lunch and to try a different variety of cake. It would be rude not to!

Fellow South Yorkshire folk, is this somewhere you have been to or heard of before? We're always looking for recommendations for places to go/places to eat so let me know if there's anywhere you recommend.

24.4.13

Thank you for the sweet comments on my hair post. You all seem to like it which is brilliant! It's always nice when people say such nice things. Like I said, I loved the cut straight away (it feels much lighter and seems to swish a bit more plus it's much easier to curl) but the colour needed to grow on me.

Once I got used to my new reflection I was as happy as Larry though!

This is an outfit I wore not-last-Saturday-the-Saturday-before (sorry, I'm a bit behind due to starting a new job and being very busy/tired!) for shopping at Meadowhall followed by lunch in Rotherham with Jonathan (blog post to follow!)

The necklace is a recent blog sale purchase and the jumper is a recent H&M purchase. It's the perfect thin, slouchy jumper for this kind of half and half weather we're having at the moment. The jeans are my favourites which I got from River Island a while ago, and the Vivienne Westwood/Melissa pumps are c/o Sarenza. They're a firm favourite due to being comfortable, a perfect fit and pretty much going with everything.

I finally got a battery put in my Juicy Couture watch which was a present a few years ago. I had stalked it for months and months in Harvey Nichols before it disappeared one day. Little did I know it was wrapped and waiting to be mine! I'm out of the habit of wearing watches so it feels a little strange suddenly wearing them (I went on a battery spree on all my watches!) but I still love this one to bits. It makes me feel very bling that's for sure.

I hope you're all having a great week so far and enjoying the sunshine (if you're getting any!) I hear we should be making the most of it as it won't last, but then I always do :)

20.4.13

I seem to have been MIA from this place for a little while. Sorry about that! A new job equals being busy and very tired so I haven't had much energy for blogging but once I'm settled in my new routine I'll be back with a vengeance.

I went to the hairdressers the Thursday before last and had loads of hair cut off. I can't tell you how good it feels to have had multiple inches cut off the ends of my hair. Usually I suffer a slight phobia of the hairdressing chair and just have a smidgen of hair trimmed off the ends, so I thought that my recent visit would be traumatic. However it wasn't in the slightest. I was so ready to lose those lank split ends!

Not only does it feel and look healthier but it's so much easier to style, much quicker to style and waves/curls keep their hold, something that didn't happen with my long hair as it was too heavy to hold any style.

I had a few long layers cut in too but nothing too drastic. Just enough to get a bit more movement.

Colour wise I had a full head of highlights which I'm hoping to build up to a blonder colour over time. At first I wasn't sure if I liked it but it has definitely grown on me. It's quite hard to capture the true colour of it in a photograph but in real life it looks "bronde" which I suppose is a nice compromise between my natural colour and being blonde. I'm not sure if I will end up as blonde as I used to be but next time I may lighten it up a little bit more.

I hope you like it! I am really happy with it and feel much prettier and "put together" than I did before. I suppose after 6 years of being blonde and spending a fortune on colouring and cutting I was enjoying having my natural colour back and just getting a wet trim once in a blue moon, but this turned into 3 years of just being plain lazy and having a mop of hair that I didn't particularly like!

Also I have been getting great results with the salon shampoo, conditioner and blow dry cream I bought so I'll have to share those when I get the chance.

14.4.13

The sunshine and 19degrees we were promised in my part of the world today didn't materialise but the sun did make a brief appearance yesterday when I was out in the garden playing with Lily and Lola, trying to get some accurate photos of my new hair colour to show you (more difficult than it sounds!)

Lily and Lola love sitting in the sunshine so they grabbed a sunny spot and stayed there until I called them in as Jonathan and I were heading out to do a spot of shopping and to get lunch.

I hope you've all had a good weekend? I'm pretty tired today thanks to our amazingly horrid neighbours who kept us awake all night, so today has been a rather more relaxed affair than yesterday and there's definitely an early night on the horizon.

8.4.13

I don't own tons of makeup as I tend to stick to products I know and love, but the small makeup bag I was using up until recently wasn't cutting the mustard. Travelling anywhere with it was a nightmare as the zip wouldn't close and I would end up with my makeup spilling out all over the place, so I vowed to get myself a bigger bag.

SewLomax got in touch with me recently to tell me about their eco-friendly canvas bags with their pretty designs (finished by hand) which have Scotchguard protection and can be wiped clean. I was intrigued to have a look at the designs, one of which they let me choose to review, and thought that a new makeup bag would solve my problem.

It took me ages to settle on one design as I like so many of them. The poo bag holder is genius (I'm tempted to place a cheeky order) and the wash bag caught Jonathan's eye as he takes products to the gym, and on weekends away, and often larger deodorants and things like that don't fit in the wash bag he's already got.

Being the bright spark that I am, it took me a while to discover the "more bags" arrow on some of the listings where there are even more designs for that style of bag. The item I chose in the end was the nail polish makeup bag which is
the perfect size for the every day makeup items I use with plenty of
room for me to add my skincare too, for nights away at my parents house
or when I go on holiday.

My bag arrived last week and I love it! As I mentioned it's a good size,
can be wiped cleaned if necessary, and the design on the front is so
girly and pretty. I haven't seen anything else like this in the shops or
online so I really feel like I've got a unique product.

The quality is excellent and there are so many great designs to choose from that they would make great Christmas or birthday gifts.

The cupcake wash bag, the camera case and the penny purse are particularly cute and I'm certain you'll love them, but the mens wash bag would make a great gift for the man in your life too!

If you'd like to follow SewLomax for details of discount codes and new products you can find them on Twitter and Facebook.

Emma is the brains behind SewLomax. What does Emma say about her brand?

My creative imagination has always been a big part of who I am and a
place I love to escape to. For me, creating and making is my coming home
and I am filled with excitement when I find just the right fabric or
catch sight of rows and rows of beautiful wools, silks and cotton. Even
discovering an old bobbin or button fills me with butterflies and glee
in anticipation at what can be created from these often discarded items.

My selection of bags are not only fun but also stylish, and offer unique
and creative ways to organise your day. Each piece in the SewLomax
range is lovingly finished by hand which enables the owner to feel that
they own something individual and unique. SewLomax products are ageless
and timeless and appeal to many genres from the gym goer to the busy
city worker! I will be adding new styles regularly to ensure my
customers are kept in a buoyant mood!

6.4.13

A little bit of sun on my skin is all it takes to lift my mood and make me feel more energetic and enthusiastic for making plans out and about. Last week I drove over to my parents house and, while I was waiting for them to come home from work, took a few photos of the cute ponies who live just across from their garden. They were happy to pose for a few photos (probably in the hopes I had a carrot handy - next time, promise!)

It feels nice to leave the house without a winter coat on with a cardi or jacket in its place, and Lily and Lola definitely prefer the brighter weather. Walking them when it's raining, cold, snowing or windy is basically impossible!

I hope you're all enjoying the slight change in weather. Let's hope we've seen the last of the damn snow!